(Le Mars) — A recreational trail along Highway 3 from Parkview Terrace into Le Mars is moving forward after a vote to proceed was given earlier this week by the Le Mars City Council. Currently pedestrians going from Parkview have to cross the highway bridge to get back into town. 243 residents live in that area, as of 2010.
The project is estimated to cost $229,000, but would be a bit less because engineering will be done by the city through Le Mars Urban Renewal/TIF funding. 80% of the project cost is covered by federal enhancement funding.
Fire Chief Dave Schipper spoke in favor of the trail and saying that the Highway 3 bridge is a busy one.
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The highway over that bridge has a 50mph speed limit.
The motion approving the preliminary concept and authorization to proceed ended in a tie at the June 21st council meeting, council member John Leornard was absent from meeting. Leonard shared his reasoning for voting in favor of the project.
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The motion to approve the preliminary concept to build a recreational trail along highway 3 from Parkview Terrace was approved with a 3 to 2 vote.
(HINTON) — Pinnacle Bank of Sioux City has opened a new branch in Hinton. Branch manager and Vice President of Pinnacle, Josh Kovarna says that the brand new building opened for business on Tuesday.
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The bank is located on the corner of Titan and highway 75 and six people are staffing the office. Other than himself, Kovarna said the staff is all new hires.
Why Hinton? Kovarna says they decided to expand to Hinton to better service customers in the area.
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The grand opening for the bank is all day Friday, July 15th. There will be tractor rides, a barbecue and prizes including a flat screen television.
Iowa Department of Revenue lays off 22 employees
(Information in the following story is from: KCCI-TV, https://www.kcci.com)
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A spokeswoman for the Iowa Department of Revenue says 22 workers have lost their jobs with the agency.
Spokeswoman Victoria Daniels says that 21 permanent employees and one probationary employee were laid off on Thursday.
KCCI-TV reports the cuts are part of reorganization efforts inside state agencies as they prepare for the new state budget, which Gov. Terry Branstad is expected to sign in coming days.
On Tuesday, Iowa Workforce Development officials confirmed 13 employees were let go from that agency and that several offices around the state are likely to close to save money.
Senators propose immediate end to ethanol credit
WASHINGTON (AP) Two senators from ethanol-producing states are proposing to immediately end a tax credit for the corn-based fuel, agreeing to support shifting some of that money to debt reduction.
U.S. Senators Amy Klobuchar of Minnesota and John Thune of South Dakota have proposed diverting $1.3 billion of the money remaining for the tax break this year to pay for debt reduction. And $668 million will be used for incentives for the ethanol and biofuels industries.
If accepted by the White House and the House, the compromise could provide a quick path to end the ethanol credit as part of budget negotiations between Congress and the White House. The Senate voted last month to end it, but the fate of that legislation is uncertain.
Man who hoped to kill Obama charged in SD slaying
SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (AP) A convicted felon charged with killing a South Dakota nurse during a carjacking describes her in a TV interview as “collateral damage” in what he envisioned as a scheme to kill President Barack Obama.
James McVay is charged with first-degree murder and burglary in the stabbing death of Maybelle Schein of Sioux Falls. Police used the OnStar tracking service in her vehicle to locate McVay and arrested him near Madison, Wisconsin.
In a Dane County jailhouse interview with Wisconsin TV station WKOW, McVay said Schein was in his way.
Court records show McVay is represented by a public defender, whose office did not immediately return a call.
400k gallons of raw sewage spilled in Iowa river
MAQUOEKTA, Iowa (AP) A failed power supply on a pump led to 400,000 gallons of untreated wastewater being spilled into the Maquoketa River earlier this week.
The Iowa Department of Natural Resources says in a news release that the spill was discovered Wednesday after someone mowing grass near the river reported a strong sewage odor.
City staff discovered the failed power supply unit after the odor was traced back to a manhole near a sewage pumping station.
The DNR says children and pets should avoid the area for 24 hours.
Repairs were expected to be complete later Thursday evening.
Until then, the city is manually operating the sewer pumping station.
MN teen pleads guilty to second Iowa clerk slaying
DES MOINES, Iowa (AP) A Minnesota teenager who was convicted of killing one Iowa convenience store clerk last fall has pleaded guilty in the death of a second clerk on the same night.
Michael Swanson, of St. Louis Park, Minn., pleaded guilty Thursday to first-degree murder and first-degree robbery in the Nov. 15, 2010 shooting death of Vicky Bowman-Hall. Hours earlier, he was sentenced to life in prison for the slaying of Sheila Myers, a convenience store clerk at a store in Humboldt.
KCCI-TV is reporting the 18-year-old Swanson read a statement during his hearing in Kossuth County, telling the court how he walked into the Crossroads Gas Station in Algona and shot Bowman-Hall, who died at a local hospital.
In Iowa, a life sentence is mandatory with no chance of parole.
Iowa man killed in northern Mo.
CONNELSVILLE, Mo. (AP) A 35-year-old Ottumwa man has been killed in a one-vehicle crash in north-central Missouri.
The Missouri State Highway Patrol says Benjamin Quintana died early Thursday when the vehicle he was ran off Missouri 149 and flipped.
10-year-old dies in ATV accident in E. Iowa
BLUE GRASS, Iowa (AP) A 10-year-old boy has died after being pinned under an ATV near Blue Grass in eastern Iowa.
The Scott’s County sheriff’s office says the accident happened Tuesday evening. Officials say in a news release the boy was asked by a family member to shut a gate in a pasture. The family member went inside to shower and when he was done he noticed the gate was not closed.
The family member went outside and found the child lying partially under the ATV. The boy was taken by helicopter to an Iowa City hospital where he later died.
Officials say an autopsy was scheduled for Thursday.
The boy’s name is not being released until all family members are notified.
Neb. officials say Platte River flows have peaked
LINCOLN, Neb. (AP) Nebraska officials say water levels on the flooded Platte River have peaked and should start to drop gradually as the irrigation season starts this week.
Nebraska and local officials said Thursday that they have been using the state’s irrigation districts to disperse water and minimize river flooding.
A spokesman for the Nebraska Department of Natural Resources in Bridgeport says the North Platte River near Bridgeport is currently flowing at about 4,700 cubic feet per second, but should fall to 3,000 cubic feet per second by the end of July.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)
